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Cafe France bounced back big and clobbered Blustar Detergent by 36 points, 88-52, for its second win in the 2017 PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup Tuesday at JCSGO Gym in Cubao.
Paul Desiderio fired 19 points and three assists, while Rod Ebondo filled up the stat sheet with 14 markers, eight rebounds, two dimes, and two blocks as all 14 players scored at least two points in the dominant win.
The Bakers cruised to the easy win after holding the Dragons to just six points in the second period, allowing them to pull away, 51-22 at the half.
Despite the victory, coach Egay Macaraya is still looking for a better chemistry ahead of a tough stretch.
“I want the players to jell. I have four new players here, so you can see that even if we’re up big, our rotation is still the same,” he said. “I want our team to jell because we know that our next games will be tougher.”
The Bakers rebounded from their 88-74 defeat to Cignal-San Beda last Thursday to improve to a 2-1 slate.
“I’m happy that the boys played well and reacted from our loss against Cignal. Hopefully, we sustain this run,” said Macaraya.
Mak Long Seng topped Blustar (0-3) with 15 points, nine rebounds, and two assists, while new pickup Jason Melano wound up with 12 markers, three boards, and three dimes in the defeat.
The Scores:
CAFE FRANCE 88 – Desiderio 19, Ebondo 14, Veron 9, Manlangit 8, Gabriel 7, Arim 6, Aquino 4, Guinitaran 4, Jeruta 4, Calisaan 3, Casino 3, Opiso 3, Faundo 2, Wamar 2.
BLUSTAR 52 – Mak 15, Melano 12, Kwaan 11, Heng 5, Ong 5, Ang 4, Choong 0, Gan 0, Kamalrulzaman 0, Liaw 0, Liew 0, Wong 0, Chin 0.
Quarters: 21-16, 51-22, 68-36, 88-52.